The Renault-Nissan Alliance at the Women's Forum 2009

DEAUVILLE, FRANCE – October 15, 2009: For the fourth consecutive year, the Renault-Nissan Alliance is sponsoring the annual Women’s Forum, to be held in Deauville, France from October 15 to 17. The partnership has a natural synergy for the Alliance.

For the past 10 years, Renault and Nissan have strengthened their relationship through a shared respect for diversity and have focused on increasing the numbers of female employees in the automotive industry. As in previous years, the Renault-Nissan Alliance will be present as a strategic partner of the Women’s Forum. Carlos Ghosn, Chairman and CEO, Renault-Nissan Alliance, will address a plenary session entitled: “get serious, make a difference” focused on the future direction for the auto industry and the need for a new model of sustainable growth.

Carlos Ghosn will also present the “Women for Education” awards for the third year running. Set up by the Elle Foundation and supported by the Renault-Nissan Alliance, the awards finance projects that promote the development of women worldwide through education, training, or business creation. Odile Desforges, Executive Vice President, Engineering and Quality at Renault, and the first female member of the Group’s Executive Committee and the Alliance Board of Directors, will speak during the “Sustainability as a killer app” round table about how ecology, social responsibility and business can work together. Also taking part in the forum this year will be Mouna Sepehri, Alliance Director of the Alliance CEO Office. She will take part in the presentation of a case study on diversity in the automotive industry, created by the Boston Consulting Group.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance and respect for diversity
The respect for diversity is a corner stone of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Created 10 years ago, this unique trans-cultural partnership has brought together two very different companies united around common goals and objectives. That respect for diversity enables the Alliance’s global workforce of over 300,000 people to realize both the wider Alliance business objectives and their own personal life goals and aspirations. Education and access to opportunity are highly prized assets within the Alliance. Renault and Nissan invest heavily in both areas, both for the benefit of their employees and for society at large. Recognizing the contribution of women in business and their importance in car purchase decisions, Renault and Nissan are leading a number of initiatives to increase the percentage of female employees in the workforce. This includes dedicated recruitment campaigns and measures to enable a better work/life balance.